The Wizard of DC
by Daniel Fielder
Summary: A young Kansas girl named Kara wishes for adventure, ending up getting more than she bargained for when she ends up in another world, trying to get home to her aunt while the wicked witch is after her for accidentally killing her sister.
1. Over the Rainbow

The one movie everyone has seen and loved! With Smallville characters.  
Disclaimer: The characters of Smallville and any other DC Characters I may use belong to the CW, Warner Brothers, DC Comics, and their respective creators while the Wizard of Oz belongs to MGM, Warner Brothers, Disney, and L. Frank Baum. I own nothing.

* * *

**The Wizard of Oz**  
Chapter 1: Over the Rainbow

Kara Kent was running through the dry colorless fields of Kansas with her dog, Krypto. She had always been a fast runner. When she was younger, she and her older cousin Clark had played tag before he began to get needed on the farm. Today though, she wasn't running for fun. She was running for fear.  
At the border of the Kent's farm, she stopped and looked at Krypto. The white puppy blended in ridiculously with the rest of the fields it seemed, but he was always so energetic, almost in defiance of the mundane life the Kents lived.  
"She isn't coming yet, Krypto." Kara gasped, letting herself sit down. "Did she hurt you?"  
Krypto shook his head vigorously.  
"Good, but she tried to though, didn't she?" Kara asked. "Come on. We'll go tell Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Martha. Come on, Krypto."  
Kara and Krypto rushed to the farm where several chicks were chirping.  
"Aunt Martha?" Kara asked as she went to Martha, her red hair and blue eyes having dulled with the rest of the colors in Smallville. She was still a very pretty woman though age showed on her face since, as she said, she earned every wrinkle she got.  
"Aunt Martha?" Kara asked again, trying to get her attention. "Aunt Martha, just listen to what Tess Luthor did to Krypto-"  
"Kara, please." Martha said in her ever patient way. "I'm trying to count."  
"Oh but Aunt Martha-" Kara began when Jonathan interrupted her. Like Martha, he had "earned every wrinkle", but his brown hair and blue eyes seemed to belong in Smallville's setting, which made sense as the Farm had been in the family for generations according to him.  
"Look, don't bother us now, honey." Jonathan said just as patiently as Martha. "This incubator's gone bad, and we're likely to lose a lot of our chicks."  
"Oh, those poor little things." Kara remarked sadly. Then she remembered why she had been in such a rush. "Oh, but Aunt Martha, Tess Luthor hit Krypto right over the back of the head with a rake just because she said he gets in her garden and chases her nasty old cat every day."  
"Kara-" Martha tried to say, but Kara just went right on, caught up in the excitement.  
"Oh, but he doesn't do it every day." Kara insists. "Only once or twice a week, and you know he'd never hurt that dumb old cat of Tess' even if he did catch it. And now she says she'll-"  
"Kara!" Martha said sharply. "Kara, we're busy."  
Kara looked at the chicks peeping and sighed.  
"Oh alright." Kara said as she went off and came across her cousin Clark and two of his friends, Oliver Queen and John Jones as they worked on a busted tractor with Clark and John holding it up as Oliver worked on reattaching the apparently broken axle.  
"How's it coming?" John asked. He was an African American man who popped out the most with his green button-up shirt, red suspenders, and purple jacket. He was also the oldest of Clark's friends, being only a decade or so younger than Jonathan.  
"Take it easy." Clark said. He was a man with black hair and shining blue eyes wearing the same blue t-shirt and red jacket he always seemed to wear as they set it down, resulting in a shout from Oliver, who was blond and almost always wore something with the color green in it. He also had a light beard on his face.  
"Ah!" Oliver snapped. "You got my finger!"  
"Then why didn't you move your finger out of the way?" John asked agitatedly.  
"Right on my finger." Oliver muttered.  
"At least it wasn't your head." John muttered.  
"John," Kara asked. "What am I gonna do about Tess? Just because Krypto chases her nasty old cat every time I come home from taking Conner to school-"  
"Listen honey, I've got those hogs to get in." John said as he walked off as Oliver walked up to her.  
"Now look here, Kara, you're not using your head about Tess." Oliver said. "It's like you haven't got any brains at all."  
"I have too got brains!" Kara said agitatedly.  
"Then why don't you use them?" Oliver asked. "When you come home from dropping off the kid, don't go by Tess' place, then Krypto won't get into her garden, and you won't get into any trouble, see?"  
"Oh Ollie." Kara sighed. "You just won't listen, that's all."  
"Well your head isn't made of straw, you know." Oliver sighed, not looking where he was aiming a hammer for a lose nail and hitting his thumb. "Oh!"  
Kara then went to John as he had managed to get the hogs into the pen.  
"Get in there before I make a dime bank out of you." John said as he got the hogs in as Kara leaned against the fence. "Listen Kara, you don't have to worry about Tess. She's nothing to be afraid of. Just have a little courage, that's all."  
"I'm not afraid of her." Kara insisted.  
"Then the next time she starts squawking, walk right up to her and spit in her eye." John said. "That's what I'd do."  
Kara chuckled as a pig began chewing on a bracelet of hers and walked off with it still in its mouth, pulling Kara into the pen as she called out for help, and John quickly got her out of there as the other two quickly went up to her.  
"Are you alright, Kara?" Oliver asked.  
"Yes, I'm alright." Kara said calming down at once. "I fell in and..."  
She then saw John still gasping as she began chuckling.  
"Why John, you're just as scared as I am."  
"What's the matter?" Oliver asked with a smile on his face. "Gonna let a little old pig make a coward out of you?"  
"Look at you, John." Clark said with a chuckle. "You-"  
"Boys!" Martha called out, coming up to them. "What on Earth are you all standing around here for?"  
"You see, Kara was leaning near the pig pen when-" Clark began.  
"It's no place for Kara near the pig pen." Martha said plainly. "There's a reason John helps us deal with them and not you and Oliver. I also saw you working on that contraption in the barn, Clark, now playtime's over so go do your chores."  
"Alright, Mom." Clark sighed good naturedly. "But someday they're gonna erect a statue of me in this county-"  
"Well don't start posing for it now, son." Martha said as Oliver chuckled. "Also, it's no good working on an empty stomach, have some crullers."  
"Thanks Mrs. Kent." Oliver said as he and Clark took one each and walked off to work on the fence.  
"And John, feed those pigs before they worry themselves into anemia." Martha told John.  
"Right, Martha." John said with a sigh as Kara took the opportunity to talk to Martha.  
"Aunt Martha, really, you know what Tess said she was going to do to Krypto? She said she was going to-"  
"Now Kara, I'm sure you're worrying yourself over nothing." Martha said kindly. "Now you just help us out today and find yourself a place where you won't get into any trouble until it's time to pick up Conner."  
Kara sighed and went to an apple tree as she sighed as Krypto joined her, looking around the dull surroundings. To Kara, the whole town of Smallville wouldn't look any different if it was all one big shade of gray. The only thing that ever really popped around her, especially these days, was an occasional rainbow.  
"Someplace where there isn't any trouble." Kara repeated. "You think there really is such a place, Krypto? There must be. It's not a place you can get to by a boat or a train. Someplace far, far away, beyond the moon. Beyond the rain."  
_Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high,  
There's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby.  
Somewhere over the rainbow, Skies are blue,  
And the dreams that you dare to dream, really do come true  
Someday I'll wish upon a star  
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.  
Where troubles melt like lemon drops.  
Way above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me.  
Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly.  
Birds fly over the rainbow, why then, oh why can't I?  
Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly.  
Birds fly over the rainbow, why then, oh why can't I?  
_Kara heard a bird singing as she saw it fly off into the horizon and out of sight, to a more colorful place, a better place than Smallville.  
_If happy little blue birds fly beyond the rainbow,  
Why, oh why can't I?  
_Kara sighed and scratched behind Krypto's ear as he panted happily. No matter where she was, she still had Krypto, the one on the whole farm that never left her side.

* * *

I love the Wizard of Oz!


	2. Rushing Off

Chapter 2: Rushing Off

Lutessa Lena Luthor was driving up to the Kent Farm in her convertible, extremely agitated. Bad enough that Kara Kent's stupid dog kept ruining her garden and chasing her cat, but now he'd bitten her leg. She arrived at the driveway and got out as Kara's uncle Jonathan was there.  
"Mr. Kent." Tess said to get his attention.  
"Tess." Jonathan said offhandedly, due to the fact that he never got along with her father, Lionel, and he didn't much care for Luthor business practices.  
"I want to see you and your wife right away about Kara." Tess said in a businesslike way.  
"Kara?" Jonathan asked. "What has she done?"  
"What has she done?" Tess asked. "I'm all but lame for the bite on my leg."  
"She bit you?" Jonathan asked disbelievingly.  
"No." Tess said. "Her dog."  
"Oh, she bit her dog, eh?" Jonathan asked with a smirk.  
"No." Tess huffed.

In the farm, Tess was talking to Jonathan and Martha.  
"That dog is a menace to the community." Tess said, stating her case. "I'm personally taking him to Sheriff Adams to make sure he's destroyed."  
"Destroyed?" Kara asked in shock. "Krypto? Oh, you can't. You mustn't!"  
Kara went pleadingly to her aunt and uncle.  
"Aunt Martha, Uncle Jonathan, you won't let her, will you?" Kara said, confident of the answer.  
"Of course we won't." Jonathan said. "Will we, Martha?"  
Kara then rushed to Martha.  
"Please Aunt Martha!" Kara begged. "Krypto didn't mean to. He didn't know he was doing anything wrong. I'm the one who ought to be punished. I let him go into her garden. You can send me to bed without any supper-"  
"If you don't hand over that dog, I'll just sue and take your whole farm!" Tess snapped. "There's a law protecting people against dogs that bite."  
"If Kara keeps him tied up, he's really gentle." Martha said in the poor puppy's defense. "With gentle people that is."  
"Well that's for the sheriff to decide." Tess said as she pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Martha. "Here's the order allowing me to take him, unless you want to go against the law."  
Martha overlooked the paper and sighed sadly over the air tight order.  
"Well, we can't go against the law, Kara." Martha said with a sad sigh. "I'm afraid poor Krypto will have to go."  
"Now you're seeing reason, Mrs. Kent." Tess said as she pulled out a pet carrier. "Here's what I'm taking the mutt in so that he can't attack me again."  
"No, no!" Kara said, clutching Krypto like he was her child. "I won't let you take him! You go away, or I'll bite you myself!"  
"Kara!" Martha said sternly, snapping Kara to her senses but still refusing to give up Krypto.  
"You wicked old witch!" Kara went on before turning back to her aunt and uncle. "Uncle Jonathan, Aunt Martha, don't let her take Krypto, please! Stop her!"  
Unfortunately, there was nothing the Kents could do as Kara was forced to let Krypto go as Jonathan picked him up.  
"Put him into the carrier, Jonathan." Martha sighed.  
Jonathan, reluctantly, put Krypto into the carrier as Tess closed the metal door and turned the small lock.  
Kara could only sob at the sight before rushing to her room. At that point, Martha had enough of this. She walked right up to Tess.  
"Lutessa Luthor!" Martha said angrily. "Just because your family owns half of this county doesn't mean you own the people in it! Ever since you moved here, I've been dying to tell you what I think of you, and now... Well being a Christian woman, I can't say it!"  
Martha walked off with Jonathan.

Tess drove off as Krypto looked at the lock. What no one but the Kents knew was that Krypto was actually a very intelligent dog, and he used his teeth to turn the lock of the carrier, having seen Tess turn it to lock him in. With the carrier opened, Krypto climbs to the edge of the car and jumped out, landing on his feet and rushing all the way back to the Kent Farm. Krypto also heard Kara's cries and hopped through her opened window and licking her face as Kara turned, and her eyes snapped to him as she smiled and hugged Krypto, who licked her.  
"Krypto, darling!" Kara said exuberantly. "Oh, you're back! You came back! I'm so glad!"  
Krypto panted happily before he noticed Kara's face fall.  
"She'll be coming back for you in a minute." Kara said thoughtfully as she grabbed a picnic basket she used for travel. She wasn't about to lose Krypto twice! "We've gotta get away. We've gotta run away."  
With that, Kara and Krypto rushed off quickly and quietly.

On the road, a young man with brown hair and blue eyes named Adam Knight was cooking some hot dogs as he rested. He made his living as a traveling magician, having a banner that said, more for theatricality than actual reason that he traveled to the crowned heads of Europe. Adam was humming to himself when a blonde girl in sparkling blue eyes arrived with a pure white puppy.  
"Well hello there." Adam said. "House guests, huh? And who might you be?"  
"Oh no, no, no." Adam said quickly. "Now don't tell me. You're... You're uh... You're traveling in disguise. No wait, that's not right. Er... Uh... You're going on a visit. No wait, I'm wrong. Um..."  
Adam glanced at the basket in the girl's arm and saw that while there was a moderate supply of food in there, there was no blanket or the like for a picnic, so he decided to take one more stab at the girl's intentions as well as seeing a little name tag on the edge of the basket that read Kara Kent.  
"You're... Running away." Adam finished up.  
"How did you guess?" Kara asked.  
"The great Adam Knight never guesses." Adam said with a chuckle. "He knows. Now why are you running away? No, no, no, don't tell me. They don't understand you at home. They don't appreciate you. You wanna see other lands. Big cities, big mountains, big oceans."  
"Why it's just like you could read what was inside of me." Kara said gaping.  
Just then, Kara's dog began eating one of the hot dogs.  
"Oh, Krypto, that's not polite." Kara gently scolded the puppy. "We haven't been asked yet."  
"Oh, he's perfectly welcomed." Adam said with a chuckle. "That's one dog to another, huh?"  
"Now let's see." Adam wondered. "Where were we? Um..."  
"Please Mr. Knight, why can't we go with you and see all the crowned heads of Europe?" Kara asked.  
"You know any?" Adam asked before he remembered his banner. "Oh, you mean that thing. Well I uh... Never do anything without consulting my crystal first. Just come inside dear. We'll uh... I'll show you."  
Adam went to a tent he pitched for all his stops as it was filled with various tapestries from all over, giving the place a mystical feel, and on a table was a large crystal ball.  
"That's right." Adam said. "Here. Just sit right down, here. That's it. This is the same genuine magic crystal used by the priests of Isis and Osiris in the days of the pharaohs in Egypt! In which, Cleopatra first saw the approach of Julius Ceaser, Mark Anthony, and so on. Now, you better close your eyes dear, for a moment, to be better in tune with the infinite."  
Kara did so as Adam quickly went through the girl's belongings and found a picture of herself with a red haired woman, a brown haired man, and a black haired man all standing in front of a decent sized farm house with a picket fence before quickly setting them back, and getting ready to use his skills to set the girl on the right track.  
"We can't do these things without reaching out into the infinite." Adam said as he put everything back the way it was and sat opposite Kara. "Alright, you can open them. You can open them. We'll gaze into the crystal."  
Adam looked at the crystal and quickly recalled that photo Kara had.  
"What's this I see?" Adam asked dramatically. "A house with a picket fence. With a red barn, cattle, and the like."  
"That's our farm." Kara said as her eyes widened.  
"There's a woman." Adam went on. "She has red hair and is dressed in a blue denim jacket and black pants. Her face is careworn"  
"That's my Aunt Martha." Kara remarked.  
"Yes, Martha Kent, I presume." Adam said.  
"That's right." Kara said, obviously assuming he saw her name on the basket. "What's she doing?"  
"Well uh..." Adam said, getting ready to give the performance of his life. "I can't quite see. Why she's crying. Someone has hurt her. Someone has just about broken her heart."  
"Me?" Kara said a look of worry and guilt in her eyes.  
"Well it's someone she loves very much." Adam explained. "Someone she's been very kind to. Someone she's taken care of in sickness."  
"I had the measles once." Kara remarked sadly, but she stayed right by me every minute. "What's she doing now?"  
"Well she's..." Adam said, deciding to drive the young girl back to the home she belonged to as quickly as possible. "What's this?! She's... She's putting her hand on her heart. She's dropping down on the bed. That's all. The crystal's gone dark."  
"Oh, you don't really suppose she's sick, do you?!" Kara asked urgently, which was just the response Adam was hoping for. "Oh! Oh I've gotta go home right away!"  
"What's this?" Adam asked. "I thought you wanted to go with me?"  
"Oh no, no!" Kara went on. "I have to get to her right away! Come on, Krypto! Come on!"  
Kara rushed off with Krypto as the wind began picking up, which for anyone who spent a good deal of time in Kansas, meant that a storm was coming.  
"Bye Mr. Knight, and thanks a lot!" Kara called back as she went on.  
"I better find a place to head to myself." Adam said to himself as the wind continued to pick up. "There's a regular whopper of a storm coming up."  
He then looked where Kara was as he put his hand to the door of his car.  
"Poor kid, I hope she gets home alright." Adam remarked as he pulled the tent into the back seat haphazardly and drove off for the town of Smallville.

* * *

Uh-oh. We all know what this means.


	3. The Cyclone

Chapter 3: The Cyclone

Being in Kansas, the town of Smallville was no stranger to tornadoes. However, the one that was brewing up near the Kent Farm was one of the worst ones that were ever seen in a good ten years.  
"Get the horses somewhere safe!" Jonathan called out to Clark as he made sure to keep them safe when he looked around. "Where's Oliver? Oliver?! OLIVER!"  
Oliver managed to get to the others as they quickly went to the storm cellar.  
"It's a twister!" Oliver called out. "A twister!"  
"I know Ollie, now get down here!" Clark said as he and John opened up the storm cellar.  
As all this was going on, Martha searched frantically for Kara. When the storm had come up, she looked around the area, but she was nowhere to be found!  
"Kara?!" Martha called out. "Kara?!"  
"Come on, everybody!" Martha heard Jonathan call out. "Into the storm cellar!"  
She went to the boys as Clark, Oliver, and John had gotten into the storm cellar as Martha talked to Jonathan, half hysterical!  
"Jonathan, I can't find Kara!" Martha called out. "She's somewhere out in the storm!"  
"I'm sorry, but we can't look for her now!" Jonathan insisted. "We've gotta get in the cellar!"  
"KARA!" Martha called out one last time before letting herself be taken into the cellar by Jonathan, who quickly closed the door, dulling any and all sounds outside except the roar of the tornado.

Kara rushed back home as fast as she could. She couldn't believe how selfish and stupid she was to just run away. She wasn't even mad at Aunt Martha, and by now she must've found out she was gone, and if Mr. Knight was right, she might be having a heart attack any minute!  
Kara and Krypto arrived home to find a huge tornado at the farm! She rushed around the farm area to see if anyone was still outside.  
"Aunt Martha!" Kara called repeatedly out.  
Finding no one, she figured everyone had made it to the storm cellar and tried to open it, but it was locked shut already.  
"Aunt Martha!" Kara called out, trying to fight the roar of the wind! "Uncle Jonathan!"  
It was no good. Her voice just couldn't carry through the door with the cyclone roaring around. With no other options, she rushed into the house with Krypto.  
"I hope Aunt Martha's okay." Kara said to Krypto as they went to their room on the way to a staircase without windows when a window frame came loose and hit Kara on the head, knocking her out cold as she fell onto the bed.

Much later, Kara never figured out how long, she woke up and looked out the space where the window was and saw that the house was in the eye of the storm and was actually being carried up by cyclone as she could only stare.  
And what things to stare at. A cow zoomed past mooing, only slightly annoyed, an old woman flew past in a rocking chair and waved at her, and two men rowed by on a row boat, waving as well as Kara could only meekly wave back as Krypto came up.  
"We must be up inside the cyclone!" Kara told Krypto. "Either that, or I've lost my mind."  
Krypto barked angrily as someone passed who looked a lot like...  
"Why..." Kara said. "It's Tess."  
But she was wrong as the figure flew by closer, she was dressed in black, had purple hair, and green skin with a huge, bulbous beak nose. She laughed evilly and flew down as the house ended up falling as well as the tornado dissipated.  
Kara could only scream in terror as the house landed with a huge thud!  
Kara gasped as the house had miraculously landed right side up. Frazzled, she picked Krypto up along with the basket she had brought home with her and walked out the door.  
And that is how the adventure began.

* * *

Fun Fact: They shot the house landing on the witch by dropping a toy house from the tip of the camera and reversing the footage.


	4. Munchkin Land

Chapter 4: Munchkin Land

Kara opened the door and emerged in a place with humble buildings and filled with color, almost like a movie musical. In the center of the town was a spiral of red and yellow that led out of the small village. She looked at the farm house, slightly lopsided where it landed, but otherwise surprisingly intact, and even that seemed more colorful here, or it simply could have been the result of contrasting with the greens, yellows, blues, and reds of the place.  
"Krypto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." Kara said as she looked around as a thought occurred to her as she looked at the colorful little village. "We must be over the rainbow!"  
Just then, a figure flew to them, seeming to come out of the sun itself. She flew gracefully and landed as she looked around. At first, Kara thought she'd stumbled into the daughter of Captain America or something as the black haired woman had a red tube top with gold lining, a golden tiara with a red star on it, silver bracelets, and blue spandex pants with white stars along them with red boots. However, the woman clearly held a strong presence and seemed even older than Aunt Martha and Uncle Jonathan, though she looked about the same age as Clark back home.  
"Now I know I'm not in Kansas." Kara said gaping as Krypto growled nervously.  
"Are you a good witch or a bad witch?" The woman asked.  
"Who me?" Kara asked. "I'm not a witch at all. I'm Kara Kent from Kansas."  
"Oh." The woman said as she looked down at Krypto. "Well is that the witch?"  
"Krypto?" Kara asked. "Krypto's my dog."  
"Well I'm a little muddled." The woman said with a chuckle. "The munchkins called me because a new witch has just dropped a house on the Wicked Witch of the East, and there's the house, and here you are, and there's all that's left of the Wicked Witch of the East."  
The woman pointed to the bottom of the house, and to her horror, Kara saw two legs in black and white pinstripe socks and dazzling ruby slippers sticking out from under the house. Obviously, the house had landed on the woman Kara mistook for Tess Luthor.  
"And so what the Munchkins want to know is if you're a good witch, or a bad witch." The woman finished.  
"But I've already told you." Kara insisted. "I'm not a witch at all. Witches are old and ugly."  
Suddenly, Kara heard giggling all around her.  
"What was that?" Kara asked.  
"The Munchkins." Kara said with a smile. "They're laughing because I am a witch. I'm Diana, the Witch of the North."  
"You are?!" Kara said, alarmed at what she had just said. True she could get mean if she got stressed, but she tried to avoid anything horribly racist, thanks to having been raised by her aunt and uncle since she was very small.  
"Oh, I beg your pardon!" Kara went on. "I've just never seen a beautiful witch before."  
"Only bad witches are ugly." Diana explained.  
"But my aunt and uncle told me when I was a kid that the witches had all died out in the Middle Ages or something like that."  
"Is Kansas a civilized place?" Diana asked.  
"A part of the United States of America." Kara confirmed. "One of the most civilized places in the world, despite its problems."  
"Well that explains it." Diana explained. "Civilized countries lost the need of witches and magic thanks to electricity and the like; however Oz, the land you're in right now, is cut off from the rest of the world by the Deadly Desert. So much as touch the sands of it, and you turn into sand."  
"Holy cow!" Kara gasped. "So if witches are needed here, why are the Munchkins so happy about it?"  
"The Munchkins are happy because you have freed them from the Wicked Witch of the East." Diana began. "She ruled over them and made them slaves."  
"Oh." Kara said. "But if you please, what are Munchkins?"  
Just then, the Munchkins laughed again.  
"The little people who live in this land." Diana explained. "It's called Munchkin Land, and you are their national hero, my dear."  
Diana then addressed the area around them.  
"It's alright. You may all come out and thank her."  
_Come out, come out,  
Wherever you are,  
And meet the young lady  
Who fell from a star.  
She fell from the sky,  
She fell very far,  
_And Kansas she says is the name of the star.  
"_Kansas she says is the name of the star._" The Munchkins repeated as they arrived. They were clearly adults, but they were all the size of children, with the tallest of them only coming to about four feet.  
_She brings you good news,  
Or haven't you heard?  
When she fell out of Kansas,  
A miracle occurred.  
_Feeling self conscious, Kara tried to explain the incident to them.  
_It really was no miracle.  
What happened was just this.  
The wind began to switch.  
The house took pitch,  
And suddenly the hinges  
Started to unhitch.  
Just then, the witch,  
To satisfy an itch,  
Went flying on her broomstick  
Thumbing for a hitch.  
_"_And oh, what happened then was rich._" An old munchkin said.  
_The house began to pitch.  
The kitchen took a slitch.  
It landed on the Wicked Witch,  
In the middle of a ditch,  
Which was not a healthy thing  
To wish upon the Wicked Witch.  
The house began to pitch.  
The kitchen took a slitch.  
It landed on the Wicked Witch,  
In the middle of a ditch,  
Which was not a healthy thing  
To wish upon the Wicked Witch,  
Who began to twitch  
And was reduced,  
To just a stitch,  
Of what was once  
The Wicked Witch.  
_Just then, several Munchkins arrived and handed Kara flowers.  
_We thank you very sweetly  
For doing it so neatly.  
You killed her so completely,  
That we thank you very sweetly.  
_"Let the joyous news be spread!" Diana called out. "The Wicked Old Witch at last is dead!"  
The whole town burst into cheers and began celebrating.  
_Ding-Dong! The Witch is dead!  
Which old witch?  
The Wicked Witch!  
Ding-Dong! The Wicked Witch is dead!  
Wake up your sleepy heads!  
Rub your eyes! Get out of bed!  
Wake up! The Wicked Witch is dead!  
She's gone where the goblins go below!  
So go blow on your horns!  
Let's all get up and sing!  
And ring the bells out!  
Ding-Dong! The merry-o!  
Sing it high! Sing it low!  
Let them know,  
The Wicked Witch is dead!  
_Just then, two figures walked up to Kara. One was dressed very fine, and the other was dressed as some kind of priest or cleric.  
"_As mayor of the Munchkin City,_" the man in the suit, the mayor, said. "_In the county of the land of Oz, I welcome you most gleefully._"  
"_But we've got to verify it legally!_" The cleric insisted. "_To see..._"  
"_To see..._" The mayor agreed.  
"_If she..._"  
"_If she..._"  
"_Is morally, ethically, spiritually, physically, positively, absolutely, undeniably, and reliably dead._"  
Just then one of the taller Munchkins, dressed all in black arrived, obviously the undertaker, as he pulled out a death certificate.  
_As Coroner, I must affirm.  
I thoroughly examined her.  
And she's not only nearly dead.  
She's really most sincerely dead.  
_"Then this is a day of independence for all the Munchkins, and their descendants!" The mayor called out.  
"If any." The cleric added.  
"Yes, let the joyous news be spread!" The mayor called out. "The Wicked Old Witch at last is dead!"  
_Ding-Dong! The Witch is dead!  
Which old witch?  
The Wicked Witch!  
Ding-Dong! The Wicked Witch is dead!  
Wake up your sleepy heads!  
Rub your eyes! Get out of bed!  
Wake up! The Wicked Witch is dead!  
She's gone where the goblins go below!  
So go blow on your horns!  
Let's all get up and sing!  
And ring the bells out!  
Ding-Dong! The merry-o!  
Sing it high! Sing it low!  
Let them know,  
The Wicked Witch is dead!  
_As Kara was getting into the celebration, three Munchkins dressed as ballerinas danced up to her.  
_We represent the Lullaby League.  
The Lullaby League.  
The Lullaby League.  
And in the name of the Lullaby League,  
We wish to welcome you to Munchkin Land.  
_As the Lullaby League danced off, three Munchkin boys, about the same age as her, but only about three quarters her height, arrived with the one in the middle holding a lollipop.  
_We represent the Lollipop Guild.  
The Lollipop Guild.  
The Lollipop Guild.  
And in the name of the Lollipop Guild,  
We wish to welcome you to Munchkin Land.  
_The Munchkin in the middle handed Kara a lollipop as the Munchkins went around her, happily.  
_We welcome you to Munchkin Land.  
Fa-la-la-la-la. La-la-la-la-la-la-la!  
_"_From now on you'll be history._" The mayor said.  
_You'll be hi...  
You'll be hi...  
You'll be history.  
And we will glorify your name!  
_"_You'll be a bust!_" The cleric added.  
_Be a bust...  
Be a bust...  
In the hall of fame!  
Fa-la-la-la-la. La-la-la-la-la-la-la!  
Fa-la-la-la-la. La-la-la-la-la-la-la...!  
_Just then, in a flash of smoke and fire, a woman appeared. She was dressed all in black, with a pointed black hat. Her hair was red, her eyes were green, with her skin being a very bright green. Unlike the Witch of the East, her face was relatively normal, aside from her scowling appearance. At her sight, the Munchkins rushed off in fear.  
"I thought you said she was dead." Kara said nervously.  
"That was her sister, the Witch of the East." Diana explained. "This is the Wicked Witch of the West. She's worse than the other one was."  
"Who killed my sister?" The witch asked. "Who killed the Witch of the East?"  
She then glared at Kara almost instinctively.  
"Was it you?!"  
"No!" Kara said quickly. "No! It was an accident! I didn't mean to kill anybody!"  
"Well my little pretty, I can cause accidents too." The witch said with an evil smirk.  
"Aren't you forgetting the Ruby Slippers?" Diana asked quickly.  
"Yes!" The witch said as her eyes widen in realization. "The slippers."  
She went to the outstretched legs of her dead sister when the slippers were gone, and the legs withered away.  
"They're gone!" The witch called out angrily. "The Ruby Slippers! What have you done with them?! Give them back to me, or I'll-"  
"It's too late." Diana said calmly as she pointed down, and to Kara's shock, she was wearing the slippers. "There they are, and there they'll stay."  
"Give me back my slippers." The Witch said darkly. "I'm the only one who knows how to use them. They're no use to you. Give them back to me. GIVE THEM BACK!"  
"Keep tight inside them." Diana advised Kara. "Their magic must be very powerful, or she wouldn't want them so badly."  
"You stay out of this, Diana!" The Witch barked as she conjured up a ball of fire. "Or I'll fix you as well!"  
The Witch tossed the fireball at Kara when Diana deflected it with her bracelets.  
"You have no power here!" Diana said defiantly. "Begone before someone drops a house on you!"  
The witch looked up nervously before looking back at the two.  
"Very well." The Witch said calmly. "I'll bide my time. But as for you my fine lady, it's true I can't deal with you now as I'd like, but just try to stay away from me. Just try. I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog too!"  
The Witch laughed evilly as she disappeared in another ball of fire as the Munchkins began coming back out.  
"It's alright." Diana assured the Munchkins. "You can get up. She's gone. It's alright. She's gone. Get up."  
Diana then sighed as she waved her hand in front of her face.  
"What a smell of sulfur." Diana remarked before turning to Kara. "I'm afraid you've made rather a bad enemy of the Wicked Witch. The sooner you get out of Oz altogether, the safer you'll sleep, my dear."  
"I'd give anything to get out of Oz altogether, but which is the way back to Kansas?" Kara asked, thinking of the Deadly Desert and what Mr. Knight said about Aunt Martha. "I can't go the way I came."  
"No, that's true." Diana remarked. "The only person who might know would be the great and powerful Wizard of Oz himself."  
All the Munchkins bowed in awe at the mention of that name.  
"Wizard of Oz?" Kara asked. "Is he good, or is he wicked?"  
"Oh very good, but very mysterious." Diana said knowingly. "He lives in the Emerald City. That's a long journey from here. Did you bring your broomstick with you?"  
"...No, I'm afraid I didn't." Kara said with a sigh.  
"Well then, you'll have to walk." Diana explained. "The Munchkins will see you safely to the border of Munchkin Land, and remember, never let those Ruby Slippers off your feet for a moment, or you will be at the mercy of the Wicked Witch of the West."  
"But..." Kara began, caught off-guard by Diana's departure. "How do I start for Emerald City?"  
"It's always best to start at the beginning." Diana explained. "All you do is follow the Yellow Brick Road."  
Kara goes to the edge of the spiral pattern where the yellow brick starts.  
"But, what happens if I-?" Kara began when Diana cut her off.  
"Just follow the Yellow Brick Road."  
Diana then flew off and disappeared into the horizon.  
"My!" Kara said in awe of her soaring off. "People come and go here so quickly."  
Kara then sighed as the Munchkins chuckled at her remark.  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." Kara said to herself. "Follow the Yellow Brick Road?"  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." The Mayor replied.  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." A Munchkin man said also.  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." A Munchkin woman repeated.  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." The cleric repeated also.  
_Follow the Yellow Brick Road.  
Follow the Yellow Brick Road!  
Follow, follow, follow,  
Follow the Yellow Brick Road!  
Follow the Yellow Brick  
Follow the Yellow Brick  
Follow the Yellow Brick Road!  
You're off to find the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
You'll find he is the Wiz,  
The Wiz if ever the Wiz there was!  
If ever the Wonderful Wiz there was,  
There is because, because, because, because...  
Because of the wonderful things he does!  
You're off to find the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
_The lively tune the Munchkins sung to see her off, seemed to fill Kara with energy as she skipped along the road with Krypto, heading out of the village and down the Yellow Brick Road with Krypto, ready to get her way back home and get back to Aunt Martha and Uncle Jonathan.

* * *

Oh... This was a hard one to finish.


	5. If I Only Had a Brain

Chapter 5: If I Only Had a Brain

Kara continued her journey with relative ease into a cornfield when she came to a fork in the road with a scarecrow in a green leather hoodie and a mask staked in the middle to protect the field from crows. He also had a quiver full of arrows on his back, which Kara assumed was to help give the illusion that he was something to fear.  
"Follow the Yellow Brick Road." Kara said as she looked around. "Follow the Yellow..."  
She looked at the two paths and sighed as no one had mentioned a fork in the road.  
"Now which way do we go?" Kara asked with a sigh.  
"Pardon me," said a voice that came from apparently nowhere. "That way is a very nice way."  
Kara looked around, but the only thing there was the scarecrow, with an arm pointing to the left.  
"Who said that?" Kara asked quickly.  
Krypto, however, was barking at the scarecrow.  
"Don't be silly, Krypto." Kara remarked. "Scarecrows don't talk."  
"It's pleasant down that way too." The voice said as Kara looked up, and the scarecrow was pointing the other way.  
"That's funny." Kara pondered. "Wasn't he pointing in the other direction?"  
"Of course people do go both ways." The voice said, most definitely coming from the scarecrow as he crossed his arms to point at both roads.  
Kara could only stare in disbelief. Witches being real in this land was one thing, but she'd never heard of a talking scarecrow before.  
"Why, you did say something, didn't you?" Kara asked.  
The scarecrow shook his head before nodding it and shaking it again.  
"Are you doing that on purpose, or can't you make up your mind?" Kara asked.  
"That's just the trouble." The scarecrow said. "I can't make up my mind. I haven't got a brain. Only straw."  
"Well how can you talk if you don't have a brain?" Kara asked.  
"I don't know." The scarecrow asked. "But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking, don't they?"  
"Yes, I guess you're right." Kara admitted. "Well, we haven't really met properly, have we?"  
"Why no." The scarecrow agreed.  
"How do you do?" Kara asked.  
"How do you do." The scarecrow responded.  
"Very well, thank you." Kara said with a smile.  
"Oh, I'm not feeling at all well." The scarecrow said. "You see it's very tedious being stuck up here all day long with a pole up your back."  
"Oh dear." Kara said, realizing how uncomfortable it must be. "That must be terribly uncomfortable. Can't you get down?"  
"Down?" The scarecrow asked. "Well no. You see I'm... Well I don't really know how I'm held up here."  
"Oh, well here." Kara said as she went to the back of the pole and looked for a rope or something tying the scarecrow to it.  
"Oh that's very kind of you." The scarecrow said with a smile. "Very kind."  
"Oh dear." Kara said as she was having trouble herself. "I don't say what I can do here."  
"Of course I'm not bright about doing things." The scarecrow began. "But if you just bend a nail down in the back, maybe I'll slip off and-"  
"Oh yes!" Kara remarked as she bent an outstretched nail down, and he fell down, and a chunk of straw fell out of his hoodie, which opened suddenly from a snag.  
"Whoops!" The scarecrow said with a chuckle. "There goes some of me again."  
"Oh, does it hurt you?" Kara asked alarmed at part of a person coming out of him.  
"Oh no." The scarecrow assured her. "I just pick it up and put it back in again."  
"I'm Kara." Kara said.  
"I'm Green Arrow." Green Arrow replied. "Not an inventive name, I know, but I didn't have the brains to think of a better one. Oh, it's good to be free!"  
Green Arrow did a somersault as he slipped and rolled down the hill onto the road.  
"Oh!" Kara called out in alarm. "Oh!"  
"Did I scare you?" Green Arrow asked eagerly.  
"Oh no." Kara assured him. "I just thought you hurt yourself."  
"But I didn't scare you?" Green Arrow asked.  
"No." Kara said plainly. "Of course not."  
"I didn't think so." Green Arrow said as a crow began chewing on his shoulder. "Scat! Shoo! Go away!"  
The crow just laughed and flew off.  
"You see?" Green Arrow asked Kara. "I can't even scare a crow. They come from miles around just to eat in my field and laugh in my face. Oh, I'm a failure 'cause I haven't got a brain."  
"Well, what would you do with a brain if you had one?" Kara asked.  
"Do?" Green Arrow asked as he thought about it. "Why if I had a brain, I could..."  
I could while away the hours.  
Confirming with the flowers.  
Consulting with the rain.  
In my head, I'd be scratching  
While my thoughts were busy hatching  
If I only had a brain.  
I'd unravel any riddle  
For any individual  
In trouble or in pain.  
"With the thoughts you'd be thinking, you could be another Lincoln if you only had a brain." Kara agreed with a smile.  
Oh I could tell you why  
The ocean's near the shore.  
I could think of things I never thunk before,  
And then I'd sit and think some more.  
I would not be just a nothing.  
My head all full of stuffing.  
My heart all full of pain.  
I would dance and be merry!  
Life would be a dingy dairy  
If I only had a brain!  
Green Arrow hopped around, getting used to his new legs as he finished up next to Kara.  
"Wonderful!" Kara remarked. "Why if our scarecrows back in Kansas could do that, the crows would be scared to pieces."  
"They would?" Green Arrow asked with a smile before he got a look in his eyes. "Where's Kansas?"  
"It's where I live." Kara explained. "And I wanna get back there so badly, I'm going to ask the great Wizard of Oz to help me."  
"You're going to see a wizard?" Green Arrow asked. "Do you think if I went with you, this wizard could give me some brains?"  
"I couldn't say." Kara replied. "But even if he didn't, you'd be no worse off than you are now."  
"Yes, that's true." Green Arrow said in a way one receives news that's neither good or bad.  
"But maybe you better not." Kara said after she looked at her slippers, the Ruby Slippers the Wicked Witch was after. "But maybe you better not. I've got a witch mad at me, and you might get into trouble."  
"Witch?" Green Arrow scoffed. "I'm not afraid of a witch. I'm not afraid of anything."  
Green Arrow then looked himself over and whispered in Kara's ear.  
"Except a lighted match."  
"I don't blame you for that." Kara said truthfully.  
"But I'd face a whole box of them at the chance to get some brains!" Green Arrow declared. "Look, I won't be any trouble because I don't eat a thing, and I won't try to manage things because I can't think. Won't you take me with you?"  
"Why of course I will." Kara said with a heartfelt smile.  
"Hooray!" Green Arrow cheered. "We're off to see a wizard!"  
"Well you're not starting off very well!" Kara said as he hopped around.  
"Oh, I'll try!" Green Arrow said. "Really, I will!"  
"To Oz?" Kara said with a smile, offering her arm.  
"To Oz." Green Arrow repeated, taking the arm as they danced down the left fork of the Yellow Brick Road.  
We're off to find the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
You'll find he is the Wiz,  
The Wiz if ever the Wiz there was!  
If ever the Wonderful Wiz there was,  
There is because, because, because, because...  
Because of the wonderful things he does!  
We're off to see the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
The new friends then headed off, with Kara feeling an odd familiarity about Green Arrow that she couldn't shake no matter how hard she tried.

* * *

And Kara's met the stand in for my favorite character.


	6. If I Only Had a Heart

Chapter 6: If I Only Had a Heart

The duo of Kara and Green Arrow went along the Yellow Brick Road, with Green Arrow holding Krypto, as being still a puppy, it was harder for him to keep up with them for extended periods of time. Unknown to anyone there, a green skinned woman watched from the shadows before disappearing into the distance.  
As the walk went on, they came across a wild apple orchard as Kara smiled.  
"Oh, apples!" Kara said excitedly. She always enjoyed apples for a snack. "Oh look!"  
Kara went to pick one as the tree branch suddenly grabbed her hand, took the apple and flung it down.  
"Ouch!" Kara said as the branch let go, stinging her hand.  
"What do you think you're doing?" The tree asked.  
"We were walking a long way, and I was hungry, and-" Kara began when she suddenly realized what she was doing. "Did you say something?"  
"She was hungry." The tree scoffed to the rest of the orchard who repeated what the tree had said. "Well, how would you like it if someone came along and picked something off of you?"  
"Oh dear." Kara sighed. "I keep forgetting I'm not in Kansas."  
"Come along, Kara." Green Arrow said dismissively. "You don't want any of those apples."  
"Are you eating my apples on what they ought to be?" The tree asked, seeming even angrier.  
"Oh no." Green Arrow assured him. "It's just that she doesn't like little green worms."  
"Why you-!" The tree began as it grabbed Kara, but Green Arrow quickly fired an arrow at the tree as he pulled her away, but stopped her from running away.  
"Hush." Green Arrow whispered to her. "Don't you wanna get some apples?"  
The trees then proceeded to fling various apples at them as the two quickly grabbed them.  
"Hooray!" Green Arrow called out. "I guess that did it. Help yourself."  
The two went to collect the apples that rolled away as Kara followed one apple to a silver statue. Kara knocked on it, and it made a muffled bonging sound. It was made of tin. Kara then looked up to see that it was a statue of a man.  
"Why it's a man." Kara said to herself. "A mare made out of tin!"  
Green Arrow arrived, having heard Kara, and looking over the statue with her. As they looked over the figure, they heard a muttering.  
"Did you say something?" Kara asked as the tin man muttered again. "He said oil can."  
"Oil can what?" Green Arrow asked.  
"Oh!" Kara said as she looked down and grabbed an oil can. "Here it is. Where do you wanna be oiled first?"  
The tin man muttered as Green Arrow listened hard.  
"He said his mouth." Green Arrow said as he oiled the mouth as the tin man moved his jaw and finally opened it.  
"My goodness!" The tin man gasped happily. "I can talk again! Oh, oil my arms please. Oil my elbows."  
Green Arrow did as he was told as the tin man began to stiffly move his arms around as his joints squeaked badly when his left arm, which held an ax, was finally lose enough to come fully down, he sighed.  
"Oh, does that hurt?" Kara asked.  
"No." The tin man said. "It feels wonderful. I've been holding that ax up for ages."  
"Goodness!" Kara remarked as Green Arrow oiled the tin man's legs. "How did you ever get like this?"  
"Well," The tin man began. "I was born as a normal person named Kal-El. I got a job chopping trees for lumber. For some malicious reason I'll never know, the Wicked Witch of the East enchanted my ax so that it cut off my leg, but my father was a great tins man, so he made me a new leg of tin, but this didn't sit well with the witch at all, so she had the ax chop off more and more of me until my father eventually had to remake me into tin, keeping everything attached and moveable by means of joints. Then, about a year ago, I was chopping down that tree when suddenly it began to rain, and right in the middle of a chop, I rushed solid, and I've been that way ever since."  
Kal-El then began moving his legs, stumbling a little from having them much loser and movable than they'd been from the past year as Green Arrow and Kara helped steady him.  
"Well, you're perfect now." Kara said cheerily.  
"Perfect?" Kal-El asked incredulously. "Bang on my chest if you think I'm perfect. Go ahead, bang on it!"  
Kara banged on the chest as they heard the echo for a good minute or so.  
"Beautiful!" Green Arrow remarked. "What an echo!"  
"It's empty." Kal-El remarked. "My father forgot to give me a heart."  
"No heart?" Kara and Green Arrow asked.  
"No heart." Kal-El confirmed. "All hollow."  
_When a man's an empty kettle,  
He should be on his meddle,  
And yet I'm torn apart.  
Just because I'm presuming  
That I could be kind of human  
If I only had a heart.  
I'd be tender, I'd be gentle  
And awfully sentimental  
Regarding love and heart.  
I'd be friends with the sparrows  
And the boy who shoots the arrows  
If I only had a heart.  
Picture me a balcony.  
A lover's voice sings low.  
"Where for art thou, Romeo?"  
I hear a beat.  
How sweet.  
Just to register emotion.  
Jealousy, devotion,  
And really feel the part.  
I would stay young and chipper,  
And I'd lock it with a zipper  
If I only had a heart.  
_Kal-El then began moving around to loosen up his legs, with occasional doses of oil here and there from the duo as Green Arrow and Kara began whispering to each other about an idea they both got. Just then, Clark lost his balance as the two caught him.  
"Are you alright?" Kara asked.  
"I'm afraid I'm still a little rusty yet." Kal-El confirmed.  
"Oh dear." Kara remarked, imagining that standing outside for a year probably didn't help his original condition. "That was wonderful. You know, we were just wondering why you couldn't come with us to ask the Wizard of Oz for a heart."  
"Well suppose the Wizard didn't give me one when we got there?" Kal-El asked.  
"Oh but he will!" Kara said optimistically. "He must! We've come such a long way already."  
Just then, horribly familiar laughter occurred, and they turned to a shed that Kara presumed was where Kal-El lived as the Wicked Witch was there.  
"You call that long?" The witch asked with a scoff. "Why you've only just begun. Helping the little lady along are you my fine gentlemen? Well stay away from her."  
The with then turned to Green Arrow.  
"Or I'll stuff a mattress with you." The witch remarked before turning to Kal-El. "And you, I'll use you for a beehive! Here Scarecrow, you wanna play ball?"  
The witch then set out a fireball as she laughed and disappeared while Green Arrow quickly backed away while Kal-El stamped it out. As the two sighed, they looked at a trembling Kara.  
"I'm not afraid of her! I'll see you get safely to the Wizard now whether I get a brain or not!" Green Arrow said before addressing the area the witch was at. "Stuck a mattress with me. Pah."  
"I'll see you to the Wizard whether I got a heart or not." Clark agreed as he also addressed the witch's threat. "Beehive. Bah. Let her try and make a beehive out of me!"  
Clark then pointed to himself, knocking his finger into his head as it made a clink sound as he looked at it.  
"Oh, you're the best friends anybody ever had." Kara said with a smile before she began wondering. "And it's funny, but I feel as if I've known you all the time, but I couldn't have, could I?"  
"I don't see how." Green Arrow pointed out. "You weren't around when I was stuffed and sown together, were you?"  
"And I was standing over there rusting for the longest time." Kal-El agreed.  
"Still, I wish I could remember, but I guess it doesn't matter anyway." Kara said as she and her friends began laughing. "We know each other now, don't we?"  
"That's right, we do." The two agreed as Kal-El and Green Arrow each took on the Kara's arms.  
"To Oz?" Green Arrow asked.  
"To Oz." Kal-El agreed.  
_We're off to see the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
You'll find he is the Wiz,  
The Wiz if ever the Wiz there was!  
If ever the Wonderful Wiz there was,  
There is because, because, because, because...  
Because of the wonderful things he does!  
We're off to see the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
_The group then continued down the Yellow Brick Road, towards a forest, ready for anything.

* * *

Oh, this is going to be interesting when they get to that forest.


	7. If I Only Had a Nerve

Chapter 7: If I Only Had the Nerve

The three people and Krypto walked through the forest as it had gotten dark and claustrophobic with trees on all sides and no way to tell if the trees were alive or not like those apple trees they'd run into just before meeting Kal-El.  
"I don't like this forest." Kara told her friends. "It's dark and creepy."  
"Of course I don't know, but I think it'll get darker before it gets lighter." Green Arrow said with a gulp.  
"Do you..." Kara began nervously. "Do you suppose we'll run into any wild animals?"  
"Mm..." Kal-El said relatively relaxed, safe thanks to his metal body. "We might."  
"Animals that..." Green Arrow began, really panicking now. "That eat straw?!"  
"Some, but mostly lions and tigers and bears." Kal-El answered.  
"Lions?!" Kara asked.  
"And tigers?" Green Arrow added.  
"And bears." Kal-El finished.  
"Lions and tigers and bears." Kara began. "Oh my."  
"Lions and tigers and bears." The group repeated. "Oh my."  
"Lions and tigers and bears!" They said as they began trotting forward. "Oh my!"  
"Lions and tigers and bears!" They said as they broke into a slight run. "Oh my!"  
"Lions and tigers and bears! Oh my!" They were about to run fully when they happened upon what looked like a green dragon that roared at them, knocking the three off their feet as the dragon turned into a green man with glowing red eyes. He looked around them, all trembling nervously.  
"Put 'em up." The green man said. "Put 'em up! Which one of you first? I'll fight both of you together, if you want. I'll fight you with one hand tied behind my back! I'll fight you with my eyes closed!"  
The green man then noticed the ax Kal-El was still holding.  
"Oh, pull an ax on me, eh?" The green man said before turning to Green Arrow. "Sneaking up on me, eh?"  
"Hear, hear." Kal-El said. "Go away and leave us alone."  
"Oh scared, huh?" The green man asked. "Afraid, huh? How long do you stay fresh in that can of yours?"  
He then chuckled.  
"Come on. Get up and fight you shivering junkyard!" The green man said before turning to Green Arrow. "Put your hands up you lopsided bag of hay!"  
"Now that's getting personal, pal!" Green Arrow said, trying to sound brave but failing badly.  
"Yes, get up and teach him a lesson." Kal-El insisted.  
"What's wrong with you teaching him?!" Green Arrow argued.  
"Well I hardly know him." Kal-El said as Krypto began barking at the green man.  
"I'll get you anyway, Pee-Wee." The green man said as his arm out stretched to Krypto as he rushed off when Kara ran up and slapped the green man as he began whimpering.  
"Shame on you!" Kara barked.  
"What did you do that for?" The green man said as he began to weep. "I didn't bite him!"  
"No, but you tried to!" Kara argued. "Why it's bad enough picking on a straw man, but when you go along picking on poor little dogs!"  
"Well you didn't have to go and hit me, did you?!" The green man sobbed. "Is my nose bleeding?!"  
"Well of course not." Kara said confused. "My goodness, what a fuss you're making. Well naturally when you go around picking on things weaker than you are... Why you're nothing but a big coward."  
"You're right, I am a coward." The green man replied. "I haven't any courage at all. Look at the circles under my eyes! I haven't slept in weeks!"  
"Well why didn't you try counting sheep?" Kal-El asked.  
"That doesn't do any good!" The green man insisted. "I'm afraid of them!"  
"Oh, that's too bad." Green Arrow replied. "Don't you think the Wizard could help him too?"  
"I don't see why not." Kara answered before turning to the green man. "Why don't you come with us? We're on our way to see the Wizard now to get him a heart."  
"And him a brain." Kal-El added, pointing to Green Arrow.  
"I'm sure he could give you some courage." Kara finished.  
"But, wouldn't you be embarrassed to be seen in the company of a cowardly Martian?" The green man asked. "I would."  
"Oh of course not." Kara said. "My name's Kara. What's yours?"  
"I am J'onn J'onzz." The Martian replied as he finally calmed down. "It is awfully nice of you to invite me along. My life has been simply unbearable."  
"Oh." Kara said comfortingly. "Well, it's alright now. The Wizard will fix everything."  
"It's been in me so long, I just gotta tell you how I feel." J'onn said.  
"Well then come on!" Kara said cheerfully as J'onn began to explain as they walked.  
It's as sad a thing to see  
When you're born to be a sissy  
Without the fim and firb.  
But I could show my prowess,  
Be a lion not a mouse  
If I only had the nerve.  
I'm afraid there's no denying  
I'm just a dandelion.  
A fate I don't deserve.  
I'd be brave as a blizzard.  
"I'd be gentle as a lizard." Kal-El added.  
"I'd be clever as a gizzard." Green Arrow finished.  
"If the Wizard is a wizard who will serve." Kara pointed out.  
"Then I'm sure to get a brain." Green Arrow stated.  
"A heart." Kal-El added.  
"A home." Kara added as well.  
"The nerve." J'onn finished before the group headed off.  
We're off to see the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
You'll find he is the Wiz,  
The Wiz if ever the Wiz there was!  
If ever the Wonderful Wiz there was,  
There is because, because, because, because...  
Because of the wonderful things he does!  
We're off to see the Wizard,  
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!  
And the group headed off, with the forest feeling a lot less threatening then when Kara and her friends went into it.

* * *

And now the gang is complete!


	8. The Poppy Field

Chapter 8: The Poppy Field

Unknown to the group, the Wicked Witch had been watching them through her magical crystal ball which allowed her to see everything in Oz.  
"Ahha." The Wicked Witch said with a small chuckle. "So, you won't take warnings, eh? All the worst for you. I'll take care of you now instead of later."  
The Witch then grabbed a bowl of some kind of steaming liquid.  
"When I gain those Ruby Slippers, my power will be the greatest in Oz." The Witch said to herself as she had the smoke billow around the crystal. "Now my beauty, something with poison I think. With poison in it, but attractive to the eye and soothing to smell."  
Just then, an image of a poppy field just outside of the Emerald City appeared.  
"Poppies..." The Witch mused. "Poppies. Poppies will put them to sleep. Sleep... Now they'll sleep."

At the other side of the forest, the group emerged and saw the Emerald City shining brightly like a big green star.  
"There's Emerald City!" Kara called out excitedly. "Oh, we're almost there! At last! At last! It's beautiful, isn't it? Just like I knew it would be. He really must be a wonderful wizard to live in a city place like that."  
"Well come on then." J'onn said. "What are we waiting for?"  
"Nothing." Green Arrow pointed out. "Let's hurry!"  
"Yes, let's run!" Kara called out, and they rushed through the fields with Kal-El and Green Arrow keeping their stride as the others were slowing down more and more.  
"Come on!" Green Arrow called out. "Come on!"  
"Hurry!" Kal-El insisted. "Hurry!"  
When they continued to slow down, they went up to them as Kara was looking woozy.  
"What's happening?" Kara asked. "I can't run anymore. I'm so sleepy."  
"Here," Green Arrow said, offering his hand to Kara. "Give us your hands, and we'll pull you along."  
"Oh no, please." Kara insisted. "I have to rest for just a minute. Krypto? Where's Krypto?"  
Krypto was already fast asleep in the poppies.  
"Oh, you can't rest now, we're nearly there!" Green Arrow begged as Kara lay down in the poppies, and Kal-El began tearing up. "Don't cry! You'll rust yourself again!"  
"Come to think of it," J'onn said with a yawn. "Forty winks wouldn't be bad."  
"Don't you start it too!" Green Arrow insisted.  
"No!" Kal-El agreed. "We gotta try and carry Kara."  
"I don't think I could." Green Arrow admitted. "But I can try."  
"Let's." Kal-El said.  
"Yes." Green Arrow agreed as they got ready to lift Kara up when J'onn collapsed onto the ground.  
"Oh look at him!" Kal-El called out. "This is terrible!"  
"Here Kal-El, help me!" Green Arrow asked as they tried to get the two to move, but nothing worked. They couldn't wake them up, and they couldn't even pull them out, as if something was holding their sleeping bodies in place. "Oh this is terrible! We can't budge them an inch! This is a spell, this is!"  
"It's the Wicked Witch!" Kal-El said with a look of horror and realization. "What do we do?! Help! HELP!"  
"It's no good screaming at a time like this!" Green Arrow insisted. "Nobody can hear you!"  
Green Arrow then called out for help as well while Kal-El continued to cry as Green Arrow thought he could make out a flying figure in the distance with black hair, blue pants, and a red tube top as snow seemed to descend down on them.  
"It's snowing!" Green Arrow said before he shook his head, sure he was just seeing things. "No it isn't."  
Just then, snow hit him, and it really was snow.  
"YES IT IS!" Green Arrow called out, astonished. "Maybe that'll help. Oh, but it couldn't help."  
Green Arrow looked down as Krypto and Kara began to stir.  
"It does help." Green Arrow said relieved. "Kara, you're waking up!"  
Kara woke up, thoroughly confused as J'onn woke up as well.  
"Unusual weather we're having, isn't it?" J'onn asked with a smile as Kara and Green Arrow chuckled and brushed the snow off of them as Kara looked at Kal-El frozen in place.  
"Oh look." Kara sighed. "He's rusted again. Oh, get me the oil can, quick."  
"Here." Green Arrow said as he handed the can to her.

As Kara's friends oiled Kal-El, the Wicked Witch watched outraged in her crystal ball.  
"Curses!" The witch called out. "CURSES! Somebody always helps that girl! But shoes or no shoes, I'm still powerful enough to conquer her and to all of those who try to stop me!"

After Kal-El was restored the group prepared to head out again.  
"Let's get out of here!" Kara said cheerfully. "Look, Emerald City is closer and prettier than ever!"  
_The three then skipped along.  
You're out of the woods!  
You're out of the dark!  
You're out of the night!  
Step into the sun!  
Step into the light!  
Keep straight ahead  
For the most beautiful place  
On the face of the Earth  
Or the sky...  
Hold onto your breath!  
Hold onto your heart!  
Hold onto your hope!  
March onto the gate  
And bid it open!  
_  
Back at her lair, the Wicked Witch decided to use her most useful tactic, fear. She grabbed her broomstick and held it out the window.  
"To the Emerald City as fast as lightning!" The witch called out as she cackled evilly launching off to the City.

* * *

THEY MADE IT! YES! Uh-oh. Now they've got a witch on their tail.


	9. The Merry Old Land of Oz

Chapter 9: The Merry Old Land of Oz

After a long trek and the near miss with the poppies, the gang was finally within a stone's throw of the _Emerald City and walked up to the gate.  
You're out of the dark!  
You're out of the night!  
Step into the sun!  
Step into the light!  
March onto the gate  
And bid it open!  
Open..._  
By the door there was a long rope bell, and they rang it as a man with black hair very subtle stubble came up. He was dressed in a black jacket with a red shirt.  
"Who rang that bell?!" The figure asked angrily.  
"We did!" The group remarked.  
"Can't you read?!" The doorman asked angrily.  
"Read what?" Green Arrow asked.  
"The notice!" The doorman insisted.  
"What notice?" The group asked again.  
"It's on the door." The doorman said. "Plan as the nose on my-"  
He glimpsed at the door as the note wasn't there and he quickly went back in and slapped the notice onto the door.  
"'Bell out of order. Please knock.'" The group read as they then knocked on the door.  
"Well, that's more like it." The doorman said. "Now state your business."  
"We wanna see the Wizard." The group explained.  
"The Wizard?" The doorman asked alarmed. "The Wizard?! But no one can see the Great Oz! No one has ever seen the Great Oz! Even I've never seen him!"  
"Then how do you know there is one?" Kara asked.  
"Because he's in my..." The doorman began before he stopped himself and groaned. "You're wasting my time!"  
"Oh please, please sir." Kara pleaded. "I've got to see the Wizard. The Good Witch of the North sent me."  
"Prove it." The doorman said with a suspicious glare.  
"She's wearing the Ruby Slippers she gave her." Green Arrow responded as the doorman looked down and saw the slippers.  
"Well so she is." The doorman responded, much friendlier. "Well bust my buttons! Why didn't you say so in the first place? That's a horse of a different color! Come on in!"  
They headed into the city and saw that everything in the city was colored green, right down to the clothes, to match the emeralds.  
"Cabby!" A man with a buzz cut in a black outfit called out. "Cabby! Just what you're looking for! Take you anyplace in the city, we do!"  
"If you please, we wanna see the Wizard." Kara explained.  
"The Wizard?" The cabby asked in shock. "The Wizard?! Well I uh... Yes, of course! But first I'll take you to a place where you can tidy up a bit, eh?"  
"Oh, thank you so much!" Kara said excitedly. "We've been gone such a long time, and we feel so messy..."  
The end of Kara's sentence trailed away as she saw a horse that seemed to be changing color as they watched.  
"What kind of a horse is that?!" Kara asked enthralled. "I've never seen a horse like that before!"  
"No, and never will again, I fancy." The cabby said. "There's only one of him in existence. This is the horse of a different color you've heard tell about."  
They then headed out with a good chuckle that seemed to come from the city and spread through it.  
_Ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho!  
And a couple of tra-la-las!  
That's how we laugh the day away  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
Buzz-buzz-buzz! Chirp-chirp-chirp!  
And a couple of la-di-das!  
That's how the crickets crick all day  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
The cabby led them to a beauty parlor.  
We get up and twelve  
And start to work at one!  
Take an hour for lunch  
And then at two we're done!  
Jolly good fun!  
Ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho!  
And a couple of tra-la-las!  
That's how we laugh the day away  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
Ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho!  
And a couple of tra-la-las!  
That's how we laugh the day away  
With a ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho!  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
_At the parlor, several people were restuffing Green Arrow for some of the straw that had fallen out during the journey and also giving him a bit extra for endurance.  
_Pat-pat here. Pat-pat there.  
And a couple of brand new straws.  
That's how we keep you young and fair  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
_Meanwhile, Kal-El was getting scrubbed and polished to make his metal body shine.  
_Rub-rub here. Rub-rub there.  
Whether you're tin or bronze.  
That's how we keep you in repair  
In the merry old Land of Oz.  
_Kara meanwhile was being attended to by several spa workers who curled her hair and made her look very regal indeed.  
_We can make a dimple smile  
Out of a frown.  
_"Can you even dye my eyes to match my gown?" Kara asked.  
"Mm-hm." The workers said.  
"Jolly old town!" Kara called out as J'onn was getting more of a massage to stretch out his Martian physiology.  
_Clip-Clip here. Clip-clip there.  
We give the roughest claws..._  
"_That certain air of savoir-faire in the merry old Land of Oz._" J'onn finished.  
"Ha-ha-ha!" Green Arrow laughed as he saw J'onn's pedicure.  
"Ho-ho-ho!" Kal-El chuckled at J'onn's manicure.  
"Ah-ha-ha-ha!" Kara laughed at J'onn's new cape.  
"Ha." J'onn replied good naturedly.  
_That's how we laugh the day away  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
That's how we laugh the day away  
With a ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho!  
In the merry old Land of Oz!  
_They continued to laugh together when in the sky they saw black smoke billowing from a distant object and very familiar laughter.  
"Who's she?" J'onn asked nervously. "Who's she?"  
"The witch!" Kara said even more nervously. "She's followed us here!"  
Just then, the Witch left leaving a billowing bit of sky-writing that read in uneven letters...  
Surrender Kara!  
"Kara?!" A citizen asked. "Who's Kara?!"  
"The Wizard will explain it!" Another citizen responded.  
"The Wizard!" Yet another citizen called out as they all headed off.  
"Oh dear!" Kara gulped. "Whatever shall we do?!"  
"Well we better hurry, if we're going to see the Wizard!" Green Arrow said quickly and plainly.  
With that, the group rushed off.

* * *

Oh boy. Just when they think they're safe, the Witch attacks.


	10. If I Were King of the Forest

Chapter 10: If I Were King of the Forest

The gang rushed to a door the citizens of Oz were crowded at as a man with bleached blonde hair and a white robe was holding them back.  
"Here!" The figure called out. "Here, here! Everything is alright! Stop that now! Everything is alright! It's alright! The Great and Powerful Oz has got matters well in hand... I hope. So you can all go home, and there's nothing to worry about. Go on home. Go home."  
As the crowd dispersed, the group walked up to the guard.  
"If you please sir," Kara said calmly. "We wanna see the Wizard right away. All four of us."  
"Orders are nobody can see the Great Oz!" The guard barked. "Not nobody! Not no how!"  
"But please, it's very important!" Kara pleaded.  
"And I got gussied up just for the occasion." J'onn added.  
"Not nobody! Not no how!" The guard repeated.  
"But she's Kara!" Green Arrow blurted out, pointing at Kara.  
"The witch's Kara?" The guard asked before looking her up and down and noticing the Ruby Slippers. "Well, that makes a difference. Just wait here. I'll announce you at once."  
The guard then walked through the door.  
"Did you hear that?" Green Arrow asked. "He'll announce us at once! I've as good as got my brain!"  
"I can barely hear my heart beating!" Kal-El remarked excitedly.  
"I'll be home in time for supper!" Kara pointed out just as excited.  
"In another hour, I'll be king of the forest!" J'onn remarked. "Long live the king!"  
_If I were King of the Forest,  
Not queen, not duke, not prince.  
My regal robes of the forest,  
Would be satin, not cotton, not chintz.  
I'd command each thing, be it fish or fowl.  
With a woof and a woof and a royal growl - woof.  
As I'd click my heel, all the trees would kneel.  
And the mountains bow and the bulls kowtow.  
And the sparrow would take wing - If I - If I - were King!  
Each rabbit would show respect to me.  
The chipmunks genuflect to me.  
Though my tail would lash,  
I would show compash  
For every underling!  
If I - If I - were King!  
Just King!  
_The group then helped dress J'onn up as a king as they smiled.  
_Monarch of all I survey.  
Mo-na-a-a-a-arch of all I survey!  
_"Your majesty, if you were king, you wouldn't be afraid of anybody?" Kara asked with a smile.  
"Not nobody!" J'onn remarked proudly. "Not no how!"  
"Not even a rhinoceros?" Kal-El asked.  
"Impossiros." J'onn remarked with a smirk.  
"How about a hippopotamus?" Kara asked.  
"Why I'd trash him from top to bottomus." J'onn remarked again.  
"Supposing you met an elephant?" Kara went on.  
"I'd wrap him up and sell himphant." J'onn went on.  
"What if you met a brontosaurus?" Green Arrow went on.  
"I'd show him who's king of the forest!" J'onn finished.  
"How?" The group asked at once.  
"How?!" J'onn asked aghast. "Courage. What makes a king out of a slave? Courage. What makes the flag on the mast still wave? Courage. What makes the elephant charge his tusks in the misty mist or the dusty dust? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage. What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage. What makes the dawn come up like thunder?! Courage. What makes the Hottentots so hot? What puts the ape in apricot?! WHAT HAVE THEY GOT THAT I HAVEN'T GOT?!"  
"Courage." The other three said.  
"You can say that again." J'onn said with a chuckle before stopping. "Wait."  
Just then, the guard burst in.  
"The wizard says go away!" The guard shouted as he returned to his post."  
"Go away?" Everyone asked, dejected.  
"Looks like we've come a long way for nothing." Green Arrow said as he shoulders bowed in embarrassment at coming at all.  
"Oh, and I was so happy!" Kara sobbed, thinking about Aunt Martha and what Mr. Knight had said. "I thought I was going home!"  
"Don't cry, Kara." Kal-El said, trying to comfort her. "We're gonna get you to the Wizard."  
"We certainly are!" Green Arrow agreed, no one knowing that the guard had begun listening to the poor girl crying.  
"Aunt Martha was so good to me." Kara went on, unable to control herself. "And I never appreciated her. Running away and hurting her feelings. Mr. Knight said she was sick... She may be dying, and it's all my fault!"  
The guard continued to blubber as the three try to comfort Kara.  
"Oh, I'll never forgive myself!" Kara wept. "Never, never, never."  
"Oh, please don't cry anymore!" The guard blubbered. "I'll get you into the Wizard somehow! I had an Aunt Martha myself, once!"  
The guard continued to blubber and cry as he let them in.

* * *

Oh... That was so sweet!


	11. The Wizard

Chapter 11: The Wizard

After the group walked through the door, they found themselves in a dark and foreboding hallway as they all went nervously down it. Even the natural light reflected from the emeralds seemed dim.  
"Wait a minute, fellows!" J'onn said quickly. "I was just thinking. I really don't wanna see the Wizard this much. I better wait for you outside."  
"What's the matter?" Green Arrow asked, nervous, himself.  
"Oh, he's just scared again." Kal-El pointed out.  
"Don't you know the Wizard's gonna give you some courage?" Kara pointed out, trying to remind J'onn of why he came.  
"I'd be too scared to ask him for it." J'onn pointed out, fretting worse and worse with every step.  
"Well then we'll ask him for you." Kara said reassuringly.  
"I'd sooner wait outside." J'onn said as he prepared to rush off when Kal-El and Green Arrow grabbed him.  
"Why?" Kara asked. "Why?"  
"Because I'm still scared!" J'onn admitted.  
J'onn rang his hands as he called out.  
"What happened?" Green Arrow asked in shock.  
"Someone twisted my wrist!" J'onn said as Green Arrow pulled his arms apart.  
"You did it yourself." Green Arrow pointed out.  
"I..." J'onn began before he looked at his hands. "Oh."  
"Come on." Green Arrow advised.  
They went on and arrived at a dimly lit and enormous throne room with only a throne and flames billowing from the side.  
"Come forward!" A booming voice called out from seemingly nowhere.  
"Tell me when it's over!" J'onn called out as he covered his eyes.  
The group nervously went on as smoke began billowing on the throne that turned into an enormous, ghostly head.  
"Look at that!" J'onn called out in alarm. "Look at that! I WANNA GO HOME!"  
"I am Oz, the Great and Powerful!" The head called out. "Who are you?"  
No one said a word as they could only tremble at him.  
"Who are you?!" The Wizard asked again, only louder.  
"If you please, I am Kara, the small and meek." Kara began as she walked up. "We've come to ask-"  
"SILENCE!" The Wizard called out.  
"Oh, Jiminy Cricket!" Kara shrieked as she rushed back to the others.  
"The Great and Powerful Oz knows why you have come." The Wizard stated. "Step forward, Kal-El."  
Kal-El walked up nervously with a gulp.  
"YOU DARE TO COME TO ME FOR A HEART, DO YOU?!" The Wizard called out again. "You clinking, clanking, clattering collection of caliginous junk?!"  
Kal-El gulped before trying to put on a brave face.  
"Y-yes sir. Yes your honor." Kal-El said. "You see, awhile back, we were walking down the Yellow Brick Road, and-"  
"SILENCE!" The Wizard barked as Kal-El quickly went back to the others. "And you, Green Arrow, have the effrontery to ask for a brain, you billowing bail of bulging boarder!"  
"Y-yes your honor..." Green Arrow began before changing what he said. "I mean your majesty! Uh... Your wizardry!"  
"Enough!" The Wizard said as Green Arrow went back to the others.  
"And you, J'onn J'onzz..." The Wizard began as J'onn went up and just stared, nervously.  
"Well?!" The Wizard snapped, and J'onn passed out as the others went to him.  
"You ought to be ashamed of yourself!" Kara snapped. "Frightening him like that when he came to you for help!"  
"SILENCE WHIPPER SNAPPER!" The Wizard shouted out before calming down. "The Magnificent Oz has every intention of granting your request."  
At those words, J'onn popped up.  
"What'd he say?" J'onn asked in shock. "What'd he say?"  
"But first, you must prove yourselves worthy by performing a very small task." The Wizard added. "Bring me the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West!"  
"But if we do that, we'd have to kill her to get it!" Kal-El argued nervously.  
"Bring me her broomstick, and I'll grant your request." The Wizard insisted. "Now go."  
"But..." J'onn began. "But what if she kills us first?"  
"I SAID GO!" The Wizard snapped as J'onn sped off and through a window as the others went the more indirect route.

* * *

Oh... That's gonna be a toughie.


	12. The Doomsday

Chapter 12: The Doomsday

As they entered the west, Kal-El, Green Arrow, J'onn, and Kara walked up to a sign with nets, bows and arrows, guns, and a hatchet. What made the situation worse were the crows' dark calls which unnerved all of them. Eventually, they reached a sign at the border of the Witch's country.

"'I'd turn back if I were you.'" J'onn said as he began to head off when Kal-El and Green Arrow caught him, and they continued on.

As the disturbing sounds continued, everyone became more and more on edge.

"I do believe there's spooks in here." Green Arrow said as he clutched his bow with a loaded arrow.

"That's ridiculous." Kal-El insisted, trying to sound brave, but still sounding nervous all the same. "Spooks. That's silly."

"Don't you believe in spooks?" J'onn asked.

"No." Kal-El insisted. "Why-"

Just then, Kal-El was lifted up by nothing and dropped down as everyone went to him.

"Oh my goodness!" Kara remarked.

"Are you alright?" Green Arrow asked.

"I do believe in spooks." J'onn chanted to himself, trying not to make them mad like he believed J'onn had. "I do believe in spooks. I do believe in spooks. I do believe in spooks."

()()()()()

From her crystal ball, the Wicked Witch chuckled at the sight of the cowering Martian.

"Ha-ha." The Witch scoffed. "You'll believe in even more than that before I'm done with you."

The Witch then approached an army of winged people, one of her slave races, the Thanagarians.

"Take your army to the Haunted Forest and bring me the girl and her dog." The Witch ordered. "Do what you like with the others, but I want her alive and unharmed. They'll give you no trouble, I promise you that. I sent a little pet of mine ahead to take the fight out of them. Now fly! FLY!"

Tess cackled as the Thanagarians took flight and headed for the haunted forest.

()()()()()

As the group was nervously looking around the area, they heard a low but loud growl.

"_Did you just hear what I just heard?_" Kara asked nervously.

"_That noise didn't come from an ordinary bird._" J'onn pointed out.

"_It may be just a cricket or a critter in the trees._" Kara said, trying to sound hopeful but failing as the noise came again.

"_It's given me the jitters in the joints around my knees._" Kal-El said with a gulp.

Green Arrow then looked up to see what looked like the creature.

"_I think I see a creature, and he seems in a fury._" Green Arrow pointed out. "_I haven't got a brain, but I think I oughta worry._"

"_I haven't got a heart, but I've got a palpitation._" Kal-El responded with a gulp.

"_As monarch of the forest, I don't like the situation._" J'onn said as he stood his ground, surprisingly.

"_Are you gonna stand around and let him fill us full of horror?_" Kara asked to no one in particular.

"_I'd like to roar him down._" J'onn said as he gulped. "_But I think I lost my roarer._"

Just then, the creature lept down, and the four got a good look at it. It looked like a muscular man in green shorts with sharp horns all along its body, even around its eyes. It roared and knocked J'onn and Green Arrow back effortlessly as it went to Kara and roared as Kal-El stepped in its way.

"Oh no, you don't!" Kal-El shouted as he punched the creature in the head with such force and strength that its head went completely around, and it fell to the ground dead, and Kal-El fell to the ground gasping as his hand was severely dented.

"It's okay." Kara said as she gasped. "We'll fix you up back at the Emerald City."

"Yeah, the worst is over." Green Arrow assured him when they heard wings flapping and saw winged people come down and attack them.

They basically smashed maces into Green Arrow, knocking out most of his stuffing as after that they just took out whatever straw was left in everything but his head and tossed it away, so that the whole area was covered in straw.

They banged up Kal-El even worse than the punch to the creature, and he didn't even have time to retaliate as they'd leap back after each blow.

J'onn was made a mockery of as he couldn't phase through their weapons and ended up very bloody.

Kara then screamed as the winged people grabbed Kara and Krypto and flew off with her as the others caught their breath and went to Green Arrow.

"What happened to you?" Kal-El asked. He couldn't see a thing through all the wings of the hawk people until they flew off.

"They took my chest out and they threw it over there." Green Arrow said as his still stuffed hand pointed to his right before pointing the other way. "They they took my legs off and threw them over there."

"Oh, that's you all over." Kal-El sighed as he began stuffing Green Arrow back up.

"They sure knocked the stuffing out of you, didn't they?" J'onn asked.

"Don't stand there, talking!" Green Arrow snapped. "Put me together. We have to find Kara!"

"Now let's see…" Kal-El said as he and J'onn went to work trying to put Green Arrow back together.

* * *

Oh boy… That took a turn for the worst.


	13. The Witch's Castle

Chapter 13: The Witch's Castle

While Kara's friends were putting Green Arrow back together, Kara and Krypto had been dropped off at the Wicked Witch's castle, a cold gloomy place that seemed to sap any and all hope and courage from Kara the moment she saw it.

The hawk people deposited Kara in front of the Witch as she smirked and took Krypto, petting him softly with a look in her eyes that told Kara she'd like nothing more to do than snap his neck.

"What a nice little dog." The witch said in a sarcastic tone as she roughly handed Krypto over to one of the hawk people before turning to Kara. "And you, my dear. What an unexpected pleasure. It's so kind of you to visit me in my loneliness."

"What are you going to do with my dog?" Kara asked, trying to sound much braver than she felt as she looked into the Witch's sadistically gleeful face. "Give him back to me!"

"All in good time, my little pretty." The Witch said, trying to sound as kind and motherly as Diana had been back at Munchkin Land.

"Oh, please give me back my dog!" Kara pleaded. With her being stuck here with her friends gone, Krypto was all she had left.

"Certainly." The Witch said. "Certainly. When you give me those slippers."

"But Diana told me not to." Kara pointed out in a matter of fact way.

"Very well." The witch said before she turned to one of the hawk people. "THROW THAT MUTT INTO THE RIVER AND DROWN HIM!"

"No!" Kara called out in alarm. "No! Please, you can have the Ruby Slippers. Just give me back, Krypto!"

"That's a good little girl." The Witch said, resuming her faux comfort. "I knew you'd see reason."

The witch reached out for the shoes, but the moment they got an inch near them, golden sparks flashed from them and burned the Witch's own hands as she called out in pain. She then backed away and rubbed her disfigured hands together, striking Kara as odd since if her hands were burned, she'd have just run them under a sink.

"Um... Sorry." Kara said, uncertain of what exactly just happened. "I didn't do it. Do I still get my dog back?"

"NO!" The Witch barked, all pretense forgotten. "I can't believe I was so foolish. I should've remembered who those shoes used to belong to. My sister would never have let her most important magical items be taken right under her nose."

"W-what are you saying?" Kara asked, beginning to get nervous for herself now.

"Those slippers will never come off as long as their wearer is alive." The Witch said darkly. "But that's not what's worrying me. It's how to do it. These things must be done delicately, or you hurt the enchanted object."

As the witch was talking, Krypto bit the hand of the hawk person holding him as he scampered off.

"RUN KRYPTO!" Kara called out as hard as she could. "RUN!"

"Catch him, you fools!" The witch barked back as the hawk person gave pursuit.

In response, several of the witch's other slaves, seemingly ordinary people in grandiose robes, drew up the bridge at the entrance. However, Krypto was a brave and smart dog, making a run at the bridge and managing to jump onto the other side just before the door would've been to far closed. He then hid under the bushes where the hawk people couldn't hope to see them. Kara happily watched all this from the balcony.

"He got away." Kara said, half exhausted with relief. "He got away."

"Which is more than you will!" The Witch snapped as she roughly grabbed Kara's arm and pulled her to a small den. "Blast you and your dog. You've been more trouble to me than your worth, one way or the other, but it will soon be over."

Tess then went to the corner and held up an hour glass with glowing red sand in it.

"Do you see that?!" The Witch called out. "That's how long you've got to live, and it isn't long, my little pretty. It isn't long at all. I can't wait forever to get those shoes."

The Witch placed the hourglass up as sand began pouring into the other end as she left, locking the door behind her, and Kara already began to feel slightly queasy, meaning that the Witch was talking quite literally about her life ending when the sand ran out.

Kara then walked around the den. She was going to die all alone, and she'd never get to apologize to Aunt Martha for running away after everything she'd done for Kara. She couldn't bear it. She could've kicked herself for all that wishing to go over the rainbow. Well she was certainly over it, and look where it got her.

Some day I wake and rub my eyes,

And in that land beyond the skies,

You'll find me...

Kara then began crying as she thought about all the people back home she'd never see again. If she'd never run away, she'd be safe with Aunt Martha and Uncle Jonathan right now, helping everyone rebuild the farm house. Now, she couldn't do anything but sit and think about how she was going to die soon.

Some... Where... Over the rainbow...

Blue birds... Fly...

Birds fly... Over the rainbow...

Why? … Oh, why can't I?

Then, half desperate for this nightmare of an end to be a dream, she called out to the room.

"I'm frightened. I'm frightened, Aunt Martha! I'm frightened!" Kara sobbed.

"Kara!" Aunt Martha's voice said as Kara looked at a large crystal ball in the room and saw Aunt Martha in there, looking frantically around the ruined farmyard with the others. "Kara, it's me, Aunt Martha! We're trying to find you! Where are you?!"

"I'm here in Oz, Aunt Martha!" Kara said with the faintest glow of hope beginning to grow. Maybe if she can get Aunt Martha to hear her, somehow, she and the others could come and help not just her, but Krypto, Green Arrow, Kal-El, and J'onn. "I'm locked up in a witch's castle, and I'm trying to get home to you, Aunt Martha!"

Then, all too soon, the crystal ball turned black, leaving Kara in more distress.

"Oh no!" Kara said, feeling even worse than before. "Don't go away! Don't go away. Aunt Martha, come back!"

Just then, the Witch appeared in the crystal ball with a sneer on her face.

"'Aunt Martha!'" The Witch said in a mocking tone. "'Aunt Martha come back! Come back!' I'll give you, Aunt Martha my pretty!"

The Witch then laughed cruelly as Kara sat down in corner with only the faintest hope left. The hope that the others were better off than she was and able to find her.

()()()()()

Just as Kal-El and J'onn had put Green Arrow back together, they heard barking as Kal-El looked down the path to see a familiar white dog.

"Look." Kal-El said in mild surprise. "It's Krypto. Where'd he come from."

Green Arrow's eyes then widened.

"Why don't you see?" Green Arrow asked. "He's come to take us to Kara!"

Green Arrow then hobbled forward as he rushed off as Krypto led them on.

"Come on, fellas!" Green Arrow called out as Kal-El and J'onn followed as well.

* * *

Again, sorry the update took so long, but only a few more chapters left.


	14. Rescue Mission

Chapter 14: Rescue Mission

Green Arrow, Kal-El, and J'onn followed Krypto to an enormous gloomy mountain as the small puppy began climbing up. Knowing that Krypto was still taking them to Kara, Green Arrow climbed after him. He was followed by J'onn and Kal-El. Being made of tin, Kal-El held onto J'onn's cape to ensure that he wouldn't fall, otherwise, he might've gotten damaged beyond repair.

About halfway up the mountain, J'onn took a break to breath as they both looked down.

"I…" J'onn stuttered nervously. "I hope my strength holds out."

"I hope your _cape_ holds out!" Kal-El called out, for once being more afraid than J'onn.

Eventually, in a valley at the top of the mountain, like a cavity in a tooth, stood the witch's dark, foreboding castle.

"What's that?" J'onn gasped, half out of exhaustion, half out of terror. "What's that?!"

"That's the castle of the Wicked Witch." Green Arrow surmised. "Kara's in that awful place?"

"Oh, I'd hate to think of her in there." Kal-El said as he began to tear up. "We've got to get her out."

"Don't cry now!" Green Arrow said in a sharp whisper. "We haven't got the oil can with us, and you've been squeaking enough as it is."

"Who are they?" J'onn asked as he pointed at the marching guards. "Who are they?"

The witch's guards were marching around repeating a chant of "O-ri-o! Ri-o-oh!"

"I've got a plan how to get in there." Green Arrow said to his two friends.

"He's got a plan!" J'onn called out in relief.

"And you're gonna lead us." Green Arrow added.

"Yeah." J'onn said smugly before he realized what that meant. "Me?!"

"Yes you." Green Arrow answered.

"I…" J'onn said with a gulp as he pointed at the castle. "I gotta get her out of there?"

"That's right." Green Arrow gently insisted.

J'onn swallowed and thought of Kara, the poor little girl who just wanted to get home.

"Alright." J'onn answered. "I'll go in there for Kara. Wicked Witch or no Wicked Witch! Guards or no guards, I'll tear the place apart! I may not come out alive, but I'm going in there! There's just one thing I want you fellows to do?"

"What's that?" The other two asked.

"Talk me out of it." J'onn gulped, but instead, the two encouraged J'onn to keep forward as they arrived just outside the area of the castle when Krypto began barking. As Green Arrow tried to calm him down, J'onn looked behind them and saw three guards standing right behind them. J'onn immediately sent out a telepathic warning while he verbally tried to warn them as well when the guards jumped. However, the three quickly overwhelmed the guards and stole their uniforms, which fit nicely over their regular attire and snuck in without incident.

"Come on." Green Arrow said as he set Krypto down. "I've got another idea."

"Do you think it'll be alright, dropping in like this?" J'onn asked, half-jokingly.

The trio then followed Krypto around the courtyard as the drawbridge was brought up with the three keeping an eye on him, however, Krypto seemed to be having trouble picking up Kara's scent.

"Where do we go now?" Kal-El asked.

Just then, Krypto began barking and rushed up the stairs.

"There!" Green Arrow said as he, J'onn, and Kal-El rushed after him to a pair of doors as Kal-El grabbed his axe before Green Arrow held his hand out. "Wait. Let's make sure. Kara, are you in there? It's us!"

()()()()()

As Kara was whimpering in the corner, her eyes unable to look away from the hourglass, she heard Green Arrow's voice as that small, almost insubstantial hope burst through her whole body as she rushed to the front door.

"Yes!" Kara called out. "It's me! She's locked me in!"

"Then we've got to get her out." Kara heard J'onn say as the door rattled as Kara's eyes unwillingly went to the hourglass as it looked like she only had three minutes left.

"Oh, hurry! Please hurry!" Kara begged. "The hourglass is almost empty!"

"Kal-El!" Green Arrow called out as Kara heard a thump at the door. She backed up as Kal-El hacked the door to pieces with his axe at an amazing speed.

With the door broken open, Kara rushed out and hugged her friends as they were finally reunited.

"Oh, guys!" Kara said as she saw Krypto panted. "Krypto!"

As Kara frantically mumbled her thanks, Green Arrow went to her.

"Hurry!" Green Arrow said. "We don't have any time to lose!"

They rushed for the main entrance only to be blocked by the guards.

From an upper area of the castle, the Witch laughed evilly as they all looked up.

"Going so soon?" The Witch asked. "I wouldn't hear of it. Why my little party's just beginning."

"Trapped." J'onn said in frustration. "Trapped like mice! … I mean, rats!"

Guards poured in from where they'd come from and held them at spear point but didn't continue to advance.

"That's right." The Witch remarked sadistically. "Don't hurt them right away. We'll let them think about it a little first."

As the group was shivering, Green Arrow looked at a rope as Kara saw his eyes follow it up to a circular chandelier while the Witch was laughing.

Just then, the Witch tossed down the empty hourglass as it exploded in a ball of fire that filled up the space between the group and the guards with red smoke. Using the distraction, Green Arrow grabbed Kal-El's axe and cut through it, causing the guards to be trapped in the chandelier and ran passed them, looking for a back way out while the Witch continually screamed "SEIZE THEM!"

They quickly rushed through the maze-like castle only to run into what looked like half of the guards and then ran into the other until they were essential corralled like the pigs at the Kent Farm into what seemed to be the Witch's den as the door slammed shut and the guards held them all at spear point while the Witch walked up to them.

"Well, ring around the rosie, a pocket full of spears." The Witch said in a disturbingly casual way. "Thought you four could out fox me, didn't you? Well, the last to go will see the first three go before her."

The witch then looked at a lamp and held her broom to it as it got fire, and she held it to Green Arrow.

"How 'bout a little fire, Arrow?" The Witch asked as she brought the broom close enough for Green Arrow's arm to catch fire as Kara instinctively grabbed a bucket to put it out as after she put out Green Arrow's arm, the water also splashed onto the Witch's face as she screamed like she was being murdered.

"YOU CURSED BRAT!" The Witch screamed. "Look what you've done! I'm melting! MELTING!"

Kara couldn't believe her eyes. The Witch was right. She really was melting.

"Oh what a world." The Witch moaned in self-pity. "What a world. Who would've thought a little girl like you would've destroyed my beautiful wickedness."

She then wailed her last wail as eventually, all that remained of her aside from some steam was her hat and cloak as the hawk person looked down and happily sighed.

"She…" One of the guards said in shock. "She's dead. You killed her."

"I didn't mean to do it." Kara said, which was true enough. "Really. It's just that he was on fire, and-"

"Hail to Kara!" The guard called out. "The Wicked Witch is dead!"

"HAIL TO KARA!" The other guards and hawk people called out. "THE WICKED WITCH IS DEAD!"

Kara sighed with relief. The guards and hawk people were just slaves like the munchkins. Then an idea popped into her head.

"The broom, may we have it?" Kara asked.

"Please!" The guard said happily. "You're welcomed to the thing!"

"Oh, thank you so much!" Kara called out. "Now we can go back to the Wizard and tell him the Wicked Witch is dead!"

_Hail, Hail, the witch is dead!_

_Which old witch? The Wicked Witch._

_Hail, hail the Wicked Witch is dead!_

The guards and hawk people saw them off as they sang the song of rejoicing the munchkins had when Kara's house landed on the Witch of the East.

_Hail, Hail, the witch is dead!_

_Which old witch? The Wicked Witch._

_Hail, hail the Wicked Witch is dead!_

_She's gone where the goblins go below!_

_Wake up blow on your horns!_

_Let's all come out and sing!_

_And ring the bells out!_

_Ding-dong!_

_The merry-o!_

_Sing it high!_

_Sing it low!_

_Let them know,_

_The Wicked Witch is dead!_

The quartet returned to the Emerald City and spread the word as the entire city cheered eagerly, and things were as joyful as when they'd first arrived.

_Ding-dong!_

_The Witch is dead!_

_Which old witch?_

_The Wicked witch!_

_Ding-Dong!_

_The Wicked Witch is dead!_

_Ha-ha-ha!_

_Ho-ho-ho!_

_And a couple of tra-la-las!_

_Ha-ha-ha!_

_Ho-ho-ho!_

_In the merry old Land of Oz!_

_She's gone where the goblins go below!_

_Wake up blow on your horns!_

_Let's all come out and sing!_

_And ring the bells out!_

The Wizard's guard then bowed them through to his chambers after he'd delivered the news of the Witch's death to him.

_You're off to see the Wizard!_

_The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!_

_Let him know the Wicked Witch is dead!_

_Hail, the Wicked Old Witch is dead . . ._

For those who don't know, this song was cut from the original film. I brought it in just for fun. Next chapter, you find out who the Wizard is in this version if you haven't already guessed.


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